Americans took out $5.42 billion more in...

Americans took out $5.42 billion more in installment debt than they paid off in January, the biggest monthly increase in four months and the second strong month in a row. The Federal Reserve said consumer credit grew at a seasonally adjusted rate of 10.6% in January, following an increase of $3.98 billion in December, which translated to an annual rate of 7.9%. Growth in both months was greater than the 5.9% rate for all of 1987.